History

2016

For the first time in 25 years of Beacon programming, the budget includes a major funding increase that will enhance services at all 80 centers.

A record 60,000 jobs at 10,000 worksites are offered as part of the Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP).

The Cornerstone program expands to 94 New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) developments across the City.

COMPASS afterschool will be available to thousands of additional elementary school children in the 2016-17 school year.

Launch of COMPASS Explore and COMPASS High programs. Explore targets elementary, middle and high school students and offers them the opportunity to devote time and energy to a particular interest or passion. For COMPASS High, school-based programs for students entering grades 9 and 10 will offer peer support and positive adult role models and will motivate students to remain engaged in school, pursue their goals and interests and explore post-secondary and career options.

Funding for Adult Literacy will support programming for 5,000 New Yorkers.

DYCD launches its new website.

2015

SYEP provides jobs to more than 54,000 youth – a new record for the program. The City creates more than 200 positions in the tech industry and more than doubles the number of Ladders for Leaders internships and opportunities for young people who are homeless, court-involved or in foster care.

The tenth anniversary of City-funded afterschool sees the unprecedented expansion of afterschool for middle school students continue. More than 106,000 middle school students are served Citywide, with new SONYC pilot programs for justice-involved youth and young people living in Department of Homeless Services (DHS) family shelters. Forty-nine new SONYC programs are awarded to add more than 2,500 afterschool seats and nearly triple the number of existing middle school seats at non-public schools and community centers.

Runaway and Homeless Youth providers will offer Crisis Shelter and Transitional Independent Living (TIL) services with a focus on the LGBTQ community, including a TIL with specialized services for transgender youth.

The newly-launched Neighborhood Development Area (NDA) Opportunity Youth: Supported Work Experience programs will offer work-readiness training and counseling, paid short-term work experience, and opportunities for career exploration to over 700 young people who are not in school or working.

Launch of discoverDYCD, which allows users to search for DYCD-funded programs in their area, and provides contact information, lists of activities offered and a mapping feature with navigation.

2014

Mayor de Blasio and DYCD Commissioner Bill Chong launch School’s Out New York City (SONYC), the City’s largest-ever expansion of afterschool for middle school students. The afterschool expansion will reduce inequality across all communities and provide sixth, seventh and eighth graders with safe, high-quality learning and recreational opportunities during an especially challenging time in their lives. OST is renamed the Comprehensive After School System of New York City (COMPASS NYC).

SYEP employs more than 47,000 young people – the highest number in five years.Forty-five new Cornerstone Community Centers open in partnership with the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA).

More than 55,000 students participate in Summer Enrichment programs, and summer evening hours are extended at Cornerstone Community Centers to offer safe havens for teens and young adults.

NYC Summer Quest doubles its number of sites by expanding beyond the Bronx into Central Brooklyn.

2013

With a $13 million investment from the DOE, the OST initiative expands with 4,000 additional slots. The Cornerstone Initiative also grows with 45 new centers, and DYCD receives $13.7 million from City Council to support adult education classes and literacy and legal services for New York’s young immigrants as part of the federal Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.

2012

NYC Summer Quest welcomes more than 1,200 students on the first day of a three-year pilot program developed by DYCD, the NYC Department of Education (DOE) and the Fund for Public Schools to address summer learning loss. The program was expanded the following year.

DYCD staff responds in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy, immediately fanning out to evacuation sites and DYCD Cornerstone and provider locations to help with Citywide recovery efforts.

2011

DYCD helps launch the Young Men’s Initiative (YMI), Mayor Bloomberg’s ambitious and comprehensive effort to address the disparities faced by black and Latino young men. With funding from CEO, DYCD expands YAIP and the Young Adult Literacy Program, and adds volunteer mentoring in Cornerstone Community Center programs.Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.

2010

DYCD begins Cornerstone programs at 25 NYCHA Community Centers. Each Cornerstone provides year-round out-of-school time activities for youth and programs for adults and seniors. Youth programs are designed to help young people acquire the skills they need to stay on track, graduate from high school and pursue a chosen career. Adult initiatives focus on activities that enhance skills and promote community engagement.

The first-ever New York City Commission on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning (LGBTQ) Runaway and Homeless Youth is convened by Mayor Bloomberg. The following year, the Commission releases “All Our Children: Strategies to Prevent Homelessness, Strengthen Services and Build Support for LGBTQ Youth.”

2009

The Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP) expands and enrolls a record 52,255 young people.

DYCD receives more than $80 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) stimulus funds. These funds enable the Department to develop 14 initiatives to create and retain jobs, serving communities in need.

In conjunction with NYC Service, DYCD introduces Summer of Service, which channels the power and enthusiasm of the City’s youth and connects them to the rewards of service.

The DYCD Fatherhood initiative partners with the CEO-funded YAIP and provides 952 fathers with subsidized internships.

2008

DYCD partners with Mayor Bloomberg’s CEO program to launch a literacy pilot for disconnected youth ages 16-24. An Adult Literacy Initiative with 35 new programs is implemented serving nearly 11,000 New Yorkers.

DYCD revamps YouthLine to Youth Connect, with the intent to help youth take advantage of the many resources available to them through DYCD and New York City.

2007

The Mayor's Commission on Women’s Issues and DYCD team up to create Ladders for Leaders, an innovative corporate internship program that builds on previous efforts to provide deserving young people with opportunities in the private sector.

Mayor Bloomberg announces that the Out-of-School Time initiative is expanding to serve an additional 14,000 youth, bringing the total number of enrollees to more than 80,000.

Celebrates 60th Anniversary as the Youth Bureau for New York City.

With guidance and support from the Mayor’s Center for Economic Opportunity, DYCD launches the Young Adult Internship Program, which helps disconnected youth get back on track, and Teen ACTION (Achieving Change Together In Our Neighborhood), a service learning program that shows young people how to become agents of change within their community.

2006

In collaboration with the Department of Cultural Affairs and the City Council, DYCD launches the Cultural After School Adventures initiative, which pairs Out-of-School Time providers with nonprofit cultural organizations in order to connect our young people with New York City's unparalleled artistic resources.

2005

The City implements the Out-of-School Time (OST) initiative, the nation's largest municipally funded afterschool program.

The Department of Youth and Community Development is now the lead agency providing comprehensive services to New York City's youth, families, and communities.

2002

DYCD assumes control of the City's youth employment and workforce development programs.

1996

The Department of Youth Services and the Community Development Agency merge to create the Department of Youth and Community Development.

1991

The Beacon Initiative is launched by Mayor Dinkins to complement his Safe Streets, Safe City anti-crime campaign.

Department of Youth Services Commissioner Richard Murphy designs the Beacon program and organizes staff and resources to fund and maintain each site. CBOs are then selected to run the first ten Beacon sites.

1989

The Department of Youth Services is established by the New York City Council to serve youth through the age of 21.

1981

Congress enacts the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (OBRA), which establishes the Community Services Block Grant Program (CSBG). Under CSBG, the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) is authorized to make grants to States which, in turn, are required to use CSBG funds to make grants to "eligible entities." The eligible entities are private and public sector organizations certified as Community Action Agencies (CAAs) under the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964.

The Community Development Agency is designated by the Governor to receive CSBG funds.

1976 - 1980

The staff component of the Youth Board becomes the Youth Bureau. Contracts with community-based agencies are greatly expanded to include grass-roots operations, afterschool programs in school facilities, and demonstration programs for runaway and homeless youth.

1975

All Youth Board direct services and staff are distributed to various City agencies. The planning, evaluation, and administration of contract programs, as well as research activities, remain with the Youth Board.

1972

The Youth Services Agency is no longer a part of the Human Resources Administration, and functions under its original name, Youth Boardagency is no longer a part of the Human Resources Administration, and functions under its original name, Youth Board.

1966 - 1971

The Youth Board becomes part of the Human Resources Administration, and functions as the Youth Services Agency. Satellite and Youth Council programs give youth a voice in government and an opportunity to run their own programs. As gang activity diminishes, youth service units are established in each Community Planning District to deal with employment, narcotics, education, health, and delinquency. Various job training and employment programs are administered by the Agency, including the massive Neighborhood Youth Corps program.

Mayor John Lindsay establishes New York City's Community Development Agency as part of the Human Resources Administration. It is responsible for administering the non-public assistance components of the New York City Home Energy Assistance Program, the New York City Adult Literacy Initiatives, classes for public assistance recipients participating in the City and State Welfare Reform program, and the McKinney Emergency Homeless Grant.

1964

President Lyndon Johnson's "War on Poverty" begins with the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964. The Community Action Program is a key provision of the Act.

1955

The Youth Board expands to serve new neighborhoods. Citywide committees are established to study various youth problems and identify available resources. Borough Coordinators are created to work with community groups.

1949

Two direct service programs are organized: a Street Club program to work with gangs, and Services to Families and Children, a casework and counseling service for those in need of extensive assistance.

1948

Referral Units are established in schools in order to connect children, youth, and families with community services. The Youth Board contracts with community agencies to provide family counseling, child guidance, vocational guidance, and after-school services. In partnership with the Board of Education, recreational and group services are established in public schools.

1947

The New York City Council passes a resolution leading to the creation of the New York City Youth Board. Its principal purpose is to coordinate and supplement the activities of public and private agencies devoted to serving youth.

1945

The New York State Commission Act is created by the State Legislature to focus on juvenile delinquency and youth development.